Summary

Hardcover large format book entitled 'Australie' published in the Netherlands by Uitgave Van Douwe Egberts N.V. Joure, Utrecht, circa 1950s (undated). It contains text in Dutch and mounted colour illustrations and presents a typical for the time introduction about Australian history, including: Dutch explorers, economy, landscape, industry, cities, sport and wildlife, all aimed at Dutch tourists and migrants. It appears to be part of a series of folios by Douwe Egberts and redeemable via coupons (there are still some inserted in the book).

The book was brought to Australia by the parents of donor Bernadette Brouwers when the family migrated to Australia in 1955.

This book demonstrates how Australia represented and promoted itself to the world, particularly in the context of migration. The information is similar to other promotional publications such as the 'Facts About' series and provides a popular presentation of Australia as a rich natural resource with exotic wildlife, healthy lifestyle, and modern cities destination. It focuses on everything from housing to taxation, climate to cost of living, roads to customs and quarantine.

Physical Description

Hard cover, large format book, 80 pages containing text in Dutch and colour images adhered to the pages. The front cover features an illustration of a kangaroo.

Significance

The Migration collection holds a large collection of material representing how Australia was presented and promoted to potential migrants from the mid-19th through to the early 21st centuries. It is particularly strong in mid-19th and mid 20th century British-targeted publications.

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